January 21, 2010

Hogan Lovells Assembles Board

Hogan & Hartson and Lovells firm leaders assembling the board that will oversee the merged Hogan Lovells had a lot of factors to take into account.

The two firms released the names of the lawyers who will sit on the 12-member board today. The merger takes effect May 1.

Marc Gottridge, Lovells' U.S. regional managing partner, said that the management committees of both Hogan and Lovells nominated six senior lawyers apiece based on their geographic location, practice area, and the role they have played in management positions at their respective firms.

"The goal was to assemble a 12-member that reflects the strengths of both Hogan & Hartson and Lovells," said Gottridge, who will be a board member.

The board will be responsible for strategy, management, and operating decisions. Specifically, the board will be tasked with making decisions on lateral partner hiring, associate and counsel promotions, promotions of non-equity partners to the full partnership ranks, and salary issues. Board members will also weigh in on issues facing the firm’s internal management committee and its co-CEOs, J. Warren Gorrell Jr., who is currently the chairman of Hogan & Hartson, and David Harris, Lovells’ managing partner. Gorrell and Harris will be board members.

The list of board members includes some familiar names, and several lawyers from both firms, including Gottridge, who hit the road in November to sell the idea of a merger to the partnerships of both Hogan and Lovells.

Joining the board from Hogan are: Claudette Christian, who currently serves on Hogan’s executive committee and is its chief diversity officer; David Dunn, administrative partner of the New York office; Gernod Meinel, managing partner of the German offices; Michael Silver, co-chair of the firm’s corporate, securities and finance practice group; and Jun Wei, co-managing partner of Hogan's greater China.

Along with Gottridge and Harris, the Lovells contingent of board members will include José Maria Balañá , managing partner of the Madrid office; Nicholas Cheffings, chair of the real estate disputes group; Andreas Meyer, a Hamburg, Germany-based partner; and John Young, the firm’s senior partner.

Christian and Young will also serve as co-chairs of Hogan Lovells and will oversee all internal operations.

As the deadline for fully integrating the two firms approaches, Gottridge said the management of both firms are "spending an awful lot of time" making the union run as smoothly as possible.

"Right now, it's more like what doesn't the integration entail," Gottridge said. "We're thinking about things like information technology issues and business development matters. There's a lot to consider."